BIG YEAR FOR JORDAN BOXING

 Following an historic year when Jordan sent two boxers to the Olympic Games for the first time, 2017 is shaping up to be another big year for the sport.

A nine-man team has been selected for the Islamic Solidarity Games being held in Baku, Azerbaijan from May 12-22, with fighters looking to build on the Rio progress made by Hussein Ishiash and Obadah Al Kesbeh last year.

Algerian coach Ezz Eldein Aqqoun, who oversaw the pair’s pathway last year, is once again at the helm of a squad that mixes experienced boxers with some of the most exciting talent emerging through the ranks.

Prior to Baku, the team will fly to Uzbekistan to participate in the Asian Boxing Championships at the end of April where tough competition awaits from the best on the continent.

The Baku squad: Hussein Ishiash (+91kg), Ihab Darweesh (91kg), Obadah Al Kesbeh, Ziad Ishiash (69kg), Ahmad Al Matbouli (60kg), Mohammad Al Wadi (56kg), Abdullah Daraghmeh (49kg), Bader Al Adawi (75kg) and Mohammad Abu Jajeh (52kg).

Join Aqqoun in the corner are coaches Omar Al Hameed and Ibrahim Al Gharagheer.